Only one more elimination today, I think.
@Eric Generic is probably gonna be happy about it, though.
Wow... you guys had
quite a spread of scores, huh? For... this.
73. Baby Got Back - Sir Mix-a-Lot
Average: 5.438
Highest score: 5 x 10 (
@Sprockrooster ,
@GimmeWork ,
@br0dy ,
@Petty Mayonnaise ,
@KingBruno )
Lowest score: 7 x 0 (
@Spiral ,
@Mina ,
@Robsolete ,
@Heaven on Earth ,
@Filippa ,
@Eric Generic ,
@japanbonustrack )
Weeks at #1: 5 consecutive Hot 100
Year-End Hot 100: #2 (1992)
Here it is, folks: the apotheosis of the novelty pop-rap era. The booty jam to end all booty jams.
The comedy hit of the 90's, perhaps alongside "I'm Too Sexy". The thing is that Sir Mix-a-Lot isn't exactly the "one-hit wonder” that people like to call him: the album he released before “Baby Got Back” went platinum, he has his place as one of the first rappers to rep for Seattle, and he actually did have some more substantial material (like “One Time's Got No Case”, a protest song about police brutality), but he'll be forever remembered for this stupid thing. I mean, if you release something like THIS, it's pretty much inevitable that it'll be what people remember you for, no? And, yeah, no matter what I have to say about it, “Baby Got Back” has its iconic place in popular culture and memes, I can't deny Mix-a-Lot that. But how is it as an actual song?
Well, once you've heard it, you're certainly not going to forget it. Sir Mix-a-Lot does not exactly have the greatest flow in the world – though he isn't as jerky and pinched as Vanilla Ice or as shouty and rhythmically stiff as MC Hammer, the flow keeps wandering off on weird tangents that throw off the rhythm and a lot of the rhymes are kindergarten simple - but he compensates for it by means of his instantly recognizable voice and being a very energetic, forceful presence, one who does his absolute damnedest to sell even a set of lyrics as silly as these. And, yeah, it's a one-idea song: “I like big butts and I cannot lie” may as well be where the song begins and ends, as well as a few attacks on beauty standards (shallow ones perhaps, but the effort is appreciated), but nevertheless there's some pretty good one-liners in there. ("Oh my God, Becky"! "LA face with an Oakland booty"! "My anaconda don't"!)
Sounds good, right? There's a catch, though. The beat has this weird sort of jitteriness to it, especially with the repeating horn sample and a bassline that sounds oddly nervy for such a frivolous tune, and I'm not sure it entirely works. Combine that with Mix-a-Lot's constant forcefulness, and it can be really, REALLY annoying if I'm not in the right mood. As in “GET IT THE FUCK AWAY FROM ME” annoying. Not to mention, I do
not appreciate the 2 Live Crew shoutout with the “Me so horny” sample; as much as I respect anybody who is willing to poke the censorious and hypocritical “moral majority” in the eye, that does not mean that the 2 Live Crew were not talentless buffoons. And you can call the lyrics objectification if you like, and that would be fair. But on the other hand, I dunno... you'd have to work kind of hard to get offended by it. I mean, the guy's standing on top of a giant ass, who's going to take that seriously, you know? It's just so delightfully dumb, and you know what, it's still pretty fun to listen to.
...Once every three months or so.
japanbonustrack (0) - Oh. My. God.
(Becky. Look at her butt.)
Filippa (0) - Don't like it.
Mina (0) - I thought this was a parody.
(Well, it kind of is, to be fair.)
Empty Shoebox (2) - You may find this record amusing. You may tell yourself that it deserves a decent score. You may ask yourself 'was I right?' You may say to yourself 'My god! What have I done?'
(LETTING YOUR DAYS GO BY)
Ray (3) - What the hell is this noise? Get off my lawn, sir mess-a-twat!
(I do like me some anti-fan nicknames!)
Rooneyboy (2.5) - Just a noise, a horrible noise.
mung_bean (4) - Some sections are so famous, but it’s a bit of a chore to listen to as a whole, as it’s just not that good to these ears.
(Do any of these sections involve South American snakes, perchance? Oh, speaking of...)
iheartpoptarts (5) - I can’t decide if I like this or not. It was more of a fun novelty throwback before Nicki had to go and shove it in all our faces, that’s for sure.
(...I'm glad I can't feel the same seething hatred I did for "Anaconda" when it was new, or I'd have a LOT of angry Nicki stans on my ass right now.)
berserkboi (9.5) - Classic, which without we wouldn’t have Anaconda…
(I'd survive.)
soratami (9) - The intro is worthy of a 10 though.
ohnoitsnathan (8) - Very memorable and quotable.
Sprockrooster (10) - This was #1 when my boyfriend was born. So jealous!
(D'awwwww.)
WowWowWowWow (8) - That beat….. Later in life, when we had The Box on our cable system, I used to hope someone would request "Put 'em On The Glass" - maybe I was thinking I could counteract that Marky Mark situation. Oops.
(Yeesh... the video for "Put 'Em on the Glass" makes me feel a little creeped out, honestly.)
KingBruno (10) - Together with a sensual electro beat provided by Rick Rubin, the song leaves behind a rather showy message on body-image.
(Do you know what the sound of sensuality is, people? DOOT-DOOT DOOT-DOOT DOOT-DOOT DOOT-DOOT)
londonrain (6) - Sure, this song will get commentary about what a basic bop it is and how ludicrous the video is, but can we discuss what a takedown this is of white beauty standards being applied to black women? Given that even in the 21st century black women’s bodies are still subjected to a ridiculous amount of scrutiny (even tennis legend Serena Williams has been subjected to mockery because of the size of her behind), I’ve come to appreciate the exposé of the racist women in the intro (who go from “they only talk to her because she looks like a total prostitute” to “she’s just so... BLACK!” It’s no triumph of feminism (it is a man rapping about how a woman’s butt makes him horny, after all) but I prefer it to the likes of All About That Bass.
(I prefer most things to "All About That Bass", to be fair.)
It don't want none unless you got buns, hun.
